Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Stag Industrial, Inc. $STAG

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in Stag Industrial, Inc. (NYSE:STAG) by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 717,961 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 39,640 shares during the quarter. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Stag Industrial were worth $25,337,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of STAG. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Stag Industrial in the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Stag Industrial by 270.1% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,436 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in Stag Industrial by 98.5% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,769 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 878 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Stag Industrial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $86,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Stag Industrial by 16.1% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 4,056 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $143,000 after buying an additional 561 shares during the last quarter. 88.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on STAG shares. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and set a $39.00 price objective (down from $40.00) on shares of Stag Industrial in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Stag Industrial in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Robert W. Baird set a $40.00 target price on Stag Industrial in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Stag Industrial in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Stag Industrial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $39.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Stag Industrial news, CEO William R. Crooker sold 93,732 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.17, for a total transaction of $3,671,482.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Virgis Colbert sold 18,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.08, for a total transaction of $685,440.00. Following the sale, the director owned 4,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $160,316.80. The trade was a 81.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 136,974 shares of company stock valued at $5,345,904 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Stag Industrial Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE STAG opened at $38.02 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.04 and a beta of 1.04. Stag Industrial, Inc. has a one year low of $28.61 and a one year high of $39.98. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $38.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.90.

Stag Industrial (NYSE:STAG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.03. Stag Industrial had a net margin of 32.35% and a return on equity of 7.68%. The firm had revenue of $220.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $213.66 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.61 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Stag Industrial, Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stag Industrial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a $0.3875 dividend. This represents a $1.55 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. Stag Industrial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 102.05%.

About Stag Industrial

Stag Industrial, Inc is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in the acquisition, ownership and operation of single-tenant industrial properties throughout the United States. The company’s portfolio is focused on free-standing warehouses, distribution centers and light manufacturing facilities designed to meet the logistical needs of a diverse tenant base. By concentrating on properties with straightforward layouts and minimal common-area maintenance, Stag Industrial seeks to deliver stable rental income and attractive risk-adjusted returns for its shareholders.

Since its founding in 2010 and initial public offering in 2011, Stag Industrial has pursued a disciplined investment strategy centered on high-quality, well-located assets.